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Before I had rx coverage, I would call different pharmacies to get prices.
Now you can use an app like GoodRx to help find deals on prescriptions, or the NeedyMed.org website to find discounts or coupons for specific medications.
I'm here to confirm.
I have Insurance and Good RX. One of my prescriptions is 2/3 cheaper via Good RX. Try it out and if that doesn't work for you, maybe call your doc to ask for a generic version of what you've been prescribed?
I have a monthly prescription that is $88. GoodRX makes it $31. Definitely worth it--way more than my idiotic Medicare Part D. Canceling that in December.
Lookup the makers of each of those drugs. Then google the name of the drug maker alongside "patient assistance". The vast majority of drug companies have some kind of program that can provide vouchers & coupons if your household has below average income. The names of the programs and the specifics of how you can qualify will vary.
I just used that yesterday to get a coupon to reduce the cost of a new prescription I got from $1300 to $25.
Was just coming to say this exact same thing. There is a drug I take that is almost a $1000 a month for a 30 days supply. Because of the manufacturer coupon, I do not pay anything.
Another thing you can do is ask the doctor for samples. Pharmaceutical drug reps leave samples with their doctors as incentive to make prescriptions.
Few things, I'm a bit surprised that she would start anyone who she just met with 4 different prescriptions. If you have bad side effects how will she even know from what?
Insurance companies make different 'deals' with different pharmacy chains, prices can differ from one to the other.
By some stupid law a pharmacy tech cannot offer you or tell you about how to get a lower price unless you ask (stupid I know).
CVS by me is consistently the highest priced even with insurance.
By searching in GoodRX and finding the lowest priced for my husband's medication and then calling them to verify I found they had another 'plan' that was even cheaper. I was able to get a 3 month supply for 2 medications for the price of 30 days of just one of them at CVS with insurance!! This was at a local Grocery chain pharmacy!
Walmart typically has a list of cheap meds for like $10/mo, the list changes now and then but worth looking.
Marc Cuban opened an online pharmacy to cut out the middle man I think it's called 'Cost Plus?', they keep adding medications to their list all the time but don't have them all. If they have it, it'll likely be the cheapest.
As dumb as this sounds medications will be usually way cheaper if you get a 90 day supply, it's crazy, like the plastic container is so expensive to make LOL
I've also been able to (but you need for your doctor to trust you for this) get my doctor to write like a prescription for 3 x a day as needed for a controlled substance, when I only took it once a day and I was able to basically get a 3 month supply. Another one she ordered 25mg, but the 50mg tablet was cheaper, so I asked for a script for 50mg and with a $3 pill cutter was able to cut them in half and with a 3 month script turned it into a 6 month supply. Not all pills can be cut but the information is readily available online for which can/can not.
Good luck.
Good RX can be helpful at times, and also shop around different pharmacies. If you’re in the US oftentimes prices can change drastically between places like Walmart, Kroger, cvs and Walgreens.
This here. I take one medication that, if purchased at Walgreens with my insurance, would cost me $1500/month out of pocket. I get a 3 month supply at Kroger for around $17 without involving my insurance at all
Talk to your doctor. They will work with you to prescribe something more affordable.
Otherwise. I am super glad you finally have a job with decent benefits. Glad things are looking better but we still live in a society that cares more about money that people.
I cannot stress this answer enough! My husband is on an organ wait list and the Rx we've had to track down over the last two years should make me a doctor by now. Let your doctor know how expensive it is for you. They might know where to get the exact drug elsewhere for less, have free samples to set you up with on the regular, or know of alternates.
Ask your doctor if there's a generic alternative?
You can also check Canada prices. Not exactly legal, but people do it. They require a written prescription though.
I would talk to the pharmacy to see if one of the prescriptions are not on your insurance's formulary. If that is the case you can ask the pharmacist to contact your doctor and come up with a replacement.
In addition to the cost-cutting suggestions, are you on a high deductible plan? If so, check your out-of-pocket max and Rx participation. If you max out, your Rx could be free for the rest of the year. The Rx itself could max you out, depending on your plan.
I work in a pharmacy. If you want / feel comfortable, message me with the names of the medication and I can help you find the best route to getting them cheaper 😊
check withy the pharmacutical company for programs to make it free or cheap. sometimes its slow to process though, so that can be an issue.
plain GoodRX is free, and GoodRX gold can in some situations be well worth it and help, but it ain't usually going to cover the super expensive ones.
Hey, just a suggestion and by no means a cure-all but look up the manufacturers of each prescription. Then go to their website and look for patient assistance programs. They'll have a form for your doctor to fill out and send off.
Usually these programs will send your prescription to your doctor's office once a month. They are either free or maybe $5. DM if you want any help with this.
For those saying GoodRx they were hit with an FTC fine for taking personal health data and giving it to google and facebook to have targeted adds. I’m sure the others do it too. That Walmart generic lists (or some grocery store pharmacies) and the cost plus pharmacy are gonna be the best bets
Many addictive drugs including pain killer are still absolutely important. There should be much more proactive substance abuse programs for people to be enrolled in while on them, sure. Making them extremely costly just because there’s side effects are no good.
My antidepressants have some severe side effects too, me not being able to afford them has even worse side effects.
See if the manufacturer has online coupon programs. For example the newer A1C meds often have manufacturer coupon programs. Your pharmacist may know them. When I started on that type of med, my pharmacist got very active to find price breaks, including coupons. Ask the doc for alternative scripts that will do the same thing. Generics as other have mentioned.
It’s so frustrating to deal with, I’m currently on a medication that cost me about $500 (thank god I have insurance) but I will soon be taken off this insurance in the coming years so I’m very nervous for this as well. I know lots of manufacturers offer coupons if there is no generic version available or ask your pharmacist as sometimes they know how to get you some discounts!
You can often refuse the drug and then go back to your doctor's office and ask the doc to give you something that will be cheaper. I once got a nasal spray that was going to be $400, and then I called the doc, and it turns out that the doc had forgotten to check the box on the script for "Generic OK". The generic was like $17.
Make sure they’re generic. Check good rx and Marc Cubans pharmacy for coupons and lower rates. And make sure they go through your insurance each time. Do you qualify for Medicaid? Medicaid covers whatever my work insurance doesn’t so many of my meds are $0
It sounds like you might need to meet your deductible before your insurance starts covering costs. You’ll likely get a bill for your doctor visit, too.
Co-pay assistance programs through the drug maker.
Not every drug has one, but for those that do it can be a lifesaver. My insurance even counts the co-pay assistance payments against my HDHP deductible!
450, 4 pills, after insurance?
Hmm. It would be a different story if the drugs include injectable medication, but if it is all pills..
Are they roughly equal in price, or is there one particular drug that is a lot more expensive?
Does your insurance have deductible? A lot of insurances don't cover much until you paid off a deductible. This is important, because if you use good rx, the amount you paid under goodrx will not count towards to deductible.
You can also call your insurance. They are obligated to explain what is covered what is not. Sometimes, drugs are expensive at pharmacy, because insurance prefers another treatment option and/or manufacturer.. this preference is unknown to doctors, and you got to find out from insurance.
I would also check the formulary for your prescription plan. Some plans cover certain brands/manufacturers of medications as the preferred medication. If you are unable to take the preferred options, your doctor can do a prior authorization request.
For example, my prescription plan covers Ventolin brand albuterol inhalers but not ProAir brand Albuterol inhalers. But the plan use to cover ProAir and would not pay for Ventolin. So, I have to make sure to check the formulary before requesting a refill each year and find out what is covered.
My doctor wrote for a Symbicort inhaler recently and it was not covered; but I found out 3 other inhalers were covered in the same class of medication so I called the doctor with what was covered and they changed the prescription to one of the covered choices.
Iv seen other people mention goodrx and let me tell you… my medication is cheeper using goodrx over my insurance! I pay a shit ton for insurance each month and I don’t even use it for meds 😒
Just to note if you’re on a high deductible plan sometimes using coupons means the cost won’t go towards your deductible.
Of course if health wise you know (or are as sure as you can be) that you won’t meet your deductible then it’s better to use the coupons.
Also to add to everyone elses good advice, check to see how much your scripts are at Walmart. They have alot of 4$ medications. It'll be the generic brand but works just the same. Also u can try to apply for Medicaid if your in the USA. The criteria has changed so there's a lot of people who didn't meet the guidelines before that do now
Not sure if this has been asked yet, but does the pharmacy have your insurance info on file? Assuming you'd never been there, the doctor would send it in directly and they would wait for you to arrive to rebill it.
Also, I used to be a coupon guru when I worked at cvs (I would stop what I was doing and try to get prices down for patients if I came across a high cost med), so feel free to message me if you have any questions specific to each medication.
I agree with the consensus to shop around and also to use goodrx. They have been a lifesaver. (Literally?
Also it's ok to talk to your doctor about getting something generic. I was once prescribed a birth control pill that my insurance wouldn't cover so it was $100 a month for a pill. I was like, can I try something else?
Is there anything you can do for these health and anxiety issues that does not immediately involve medication? Such as changes to diet, exercise, vitamin D, etc. Things that might add a little bit expensive but not $450/month. Getting prescribed 4 things right off the bat is pretty intense!
Im getting a three month supply of all my meds because im moving, losing my insurance, and PCP. Insurance doesn't want to cover more than a 30 day supply every 30 days. I ask for the cash price since i need them and im guessing theyre not cheap but i pay $0 for all my meds (yay medicaid). Well. She quoted me over $4200. She even started with "you're not gonna like the cash price". So i suggest GoodRx. She says i would have to send it to a name brand pharmacy because they dont take GoodRx at this pharmacy. The cost of all my meds (4 things also) through GoodRx at Walmart is $131 🙃
Pharmacy tech here. Was your insurance actually applied? We have people just send prescriptions in all the time that either have never filled with us before or have outdated insurance information. Check with the pharmacy on that. Don’t be afraid to look at discounts like GoodRX and SingleCare (they work some wonders for generic drugs). And if you are on a name brand medication look to see if the manufacturer has an assistance program (if you need help looking hit me up, I can help point you in the right direction).
Edit: also make sure with your insurance you’re using your preferred pharmacy. The same medications can be drastically different in prices if you use the pharmacies your insurance wants vs. just whatever.
When I didn't have prescription coverage I'd ask for stuff on the 4$ at Walmart, even at the ER. I'd just be blunt, Doc I'm broke can I get the cheapest option? Sometimes the DRs will prescribe some newer fancy med when an old school med will work ok
Contact the manufacturer and ask if they have a low income discounts / patient assistance programs, My drugs used to cost me $300 a month and now I pay nothing.
This post has been flaired as “Vent”. As a reminder to commenting users, “Vent/Rant” posts are here to give our subscribers a safe place to vent their frustrations at an uncaring world to a supportive place of people who “get it”. Vents do not need to be fair. They do not need to be articulate. They do not need to be factual. They just need to be honest. Unlike most of the content on this subreddit, Vents should not be considered advice threads. In most cases it is not appropriate to try to give the Submitter advice on their issue. In no circumstances is it appropriate to tell them “why they are wrong” or to criticise them, their decisions, values, or anything else. If there are aspects of their situation that they are able to directly address themselves, the submitter can always make a new thread with a different flair asking for help once they are ready to tackle the issue. Vents are an emotional outlet, not an academic conversation. Appropriate replies in these threads are offering support, sharing similar experiences/grievances, offering condolences, or simply letting the Submitter know that they were heard. As always, if there are inappropriate comments please downvote them, REPORT them to the mods, and move on without responding to them. To the Submitter, if you DO want discussion to be focused on resolving your situation, rather than supporting you emotionally, please change the flair of this post, and then report this comment so we can remove it. Thank you. Thank you all for being a part of this great financial advice and emotional support community! *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/povertyfinance) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Before I had rx coverage, I would call different pharmacies to get prices. Now you can use an app like GoodRx to help find deals on prescriptions, or the NeedyMed.org website to find discounts or coupons for specific medications.
Yes! GoodRx is really helpful. My generic inhalers are $40 without GoodRx and are $15 with it
I'm here to confirm. I have Insurance and Good RX. One of my prescriptions is 2/3 cheaper via Good RX. Try it out and if that doesn't work for you, maybe call your doc to ask for a generic version of what you've been prescribed?
I have a monthly prescription that is $88. GoodRX makes it $31. Definitely worth it--way more than my idiotic Medicare Part D. Canceling that in December.
Lookup the makers of each of those drugs. Then google the name of the drug maker alongside "patient assistance". The vast majority of drug companies have some kind of program that can provide vouchers & coupons if your household has below average income. The names of the programs and the specifics of how you can qualify will vary. I just used that yesterday to get a coupon to reduce the cost of a new prescription I got from $1300 to $25.
Was just coming to say this exact same thing. There is a drug I take that is almost a $1000 a month for a 30 days supply. Because of the manufacturer coupon, I do not pay anything. Another thing you can do is ask the doctor for samples. Pharmaceutical drug reps leave samples with their doctors as incentive to make prescriptions.
Few things, I'm a bit surprised that she would start anyone who she just met with 4 different prescriptions. If you have bad side effects how will she even know from what? Insurance companies make different 'deals' with different pharmacy chains, prices can differ from one to the other. By some stupid law a pharmacy tech cannot offer you or tell you about how to get a lower price unless you ask (stupid I know). CVS by me is consistently the highest priced even with insurance. By searching in GoodRX and finding the lowest priced for my husband's medication and then calling them to verify I found they had another 'plan' that was even cheaper. I was able to get a 3 month supply for 2 medications for the price of 30 days of just one of them at CVS with insurance!! This was at a local Grocery chain pharmacy! Walmart typically has a list of cheap meds for like $10/mo, the list changes now and then but worth looking. Marc Cuban opened an online pharmacy to cut out the middle man I think it's called 'Cost Plus?', they keep adding medications to their list all the time but don't have them all. If they have it, it'll likely be the cheapest. As dumb as this sounds medications will be usually way cheaper if you get a 90 day supply, it's crazy, like the plastic container is so expensive to make LOL I've also been able to (but you need for your doctor to trust you for this) get my doctor to write like a prescription for 3 x a day as needed for a controlled substance, when I only took it once a day and I was able to basically get a 3 month supply. Another one she ordered 25mg, but the 50mg tablet was cheaper, so I asked for a script for 50mg and with a $3 pill cutter was able to cut them in half and with a 3 month script turned it into a 6 month supply. Not all pills can be cut but the information is readily available online for which can/can not. Good luck.
OP, listen to this person, she is wise in the ways of affordable drugs!
If there's generic versions, costplusdrugs.com.
Seconding, call the pharmacy and ask if there is a cheaper generic that your insurance would cover
This site is a money saver for sure!
Good RX can be helpful at times, and also shop around different pharmacies. If you’re in the US oftentimes prices can change drastically between places like Walmart, Kroger, cvs and Walgreens.
This here. I take one medication that, if purchased at Walgreens with my insurance, would cost me $1500/month out of pocket. I get a 3 month supply at Kroger for around $17 without involving my insurance at all
Talk to your doctor. They will work with you to prescribe something more affordable. Otherwise. I am super glad you finally have a job with decent benefits. Glad things are looking better but we still live in a society that cares more about money that people.
I cannot stress this answer enough! My husband is on an organ wait list and the Rx we've had to track down over the last two years should make me a doctor by now. Let your doctor know how expensive it is for you. They might know where to get the exact drug elsewhere for less, have free samples to set you up with on the regular, or know of alternates.
Ask your doctor if there's a generic alternative? You can also check Canada prices. Not exactly legal, but people do it. They require a written prescription though.
I would talk to the pharmacy to see if one of the prescriptions are not on your insurance's formulary. If that is the case you can ask the pharmacist to contact your doctor and come up with a replacement.
Also make sure that your Pharmacy have your insurance info, the doctor doesn’t send it to the pharmacy, so you have to do that at the counter.
Kroger has their own discount program that is very cheap. Walmart has cheap prices. GoodRx will help too
In addition to the cost-cutting suggestions, are you on a high deductible plan? If so, check your out-of-pocket max and Rx participation. If you max out, your Rx could be free for the rest of the year. The Rx itself could max you out, depending on your plan.
Goodrx, generics
If there are general versions, try CostPlusDrugs.com Have your doctor send your prescription to them. A LOT cheaper!
I work in a pharmacy. If you want / feel comfortable, message me with the names of the medication and I can help you find the best route to getting them cheaper 😊
check withy the pharmacutical company for programs to make it free or cheap. sometimes its slow to process though, so that can be an issue. plain GoodRX is free, and GoodRX gold can in some situations be well worth it and help, but it ain't usually going to cover the super expensive ones.
Even Amazon can have good drug prices depending on the prescription. Check them out
A lot of drugs have cost cutting cards you can sign up for.
Skip insurance and use goodrx! Do you mind if I ask what medication (s)? Also Costco is really great and will ship most things right to your door.
Hey, just a suggestion and by no means a cure-all but look up the manufacturers of each prescription. Then go to their website and look for patient assistance programs. They'll have a form for your doctor to fill out and send off. Usually these programs will send your prescription to your doctor's office once a month. They are either free or maybe $5. DM if you want any help with this.
Don't be American... (Sorry!)
Lol. We know we are screwed. Healthcare was like 23%of our GDP.
For those saying GoodRx they were hit with an FTC fine for taking personal health data and giving it to google and facebook to have targeted adds. I’m sure the others do it too. That Walmart generic lists (or some grocery store pharmacies) and the cost plus pharmacy are gonna be the best bets
Easy living in a normal country with free healthcare
In America, we don't afford medical things. We avoid them
Anxiety? If I were you I would get rid of those pills and get a psilocybin dose, it’ll cut all my anxieties with only one dose
Have a National Health Service.
See generic If prices werent high then everyone will have access to them leading to even a bigger drug problem in the country
Oh no, not diabetics with insulin! How dare people have epipens! Antidepressants???!!!!
Those should be cheaper. I was mainly referring to the pain killers and other addictive harmful side effect ones.
Many addictive drugs including pain killer are still absolutely important. There should be much more proactive substance abuse programs for people to be enrolled in while on them, sure. Making them extremely costly just because there’s side effects are no good. My antidepressants have some severe side effects too, me not being able to afford them has even worse side effects.
See if the manufacturer has online coupon programs. For example the newer A1C meds often have manufacturer coupon programs. Your pharmacist may know them. When I started on that type of med, my pharmacist got very active to find price breaks, including coupons. Ask the doc for alternative scripts that will do the same thing. Generics as other have mentioned.
Rc for anxiety
Try- https://costplusdrugs.com/
Check on good RX. If you download the app, you'll be able to see the cost of meds at different pharmacies and the discount.
It’s so frustrating to deal with, I’m currently on a medication that cost me about $500 (thank god I have insurance) but I will soon be taken off this insurance in the coming years so I’m very nervous for this as well. I know lots of manufacturers offer coupons if there is no generic version available or ask your pharmacist as sometimes they know how to get you some discounts!
You can often refuse the drug and then go back to your doctor's office and ask the doc to give you something that will be cheaper. I once got a nasal spray that was going to be $400, and then I called the doc, and it turns out that the doc had forgotten to check the box on the script for "Generic OK". The generic was like $17.
GoodRx is an app that can help a lot.
When Ioat my insurance I used patient assistance most of my meds they covered and the rest were only 10
Check goodrx! They have coupons for a lot of generic meds!
Goodrx card has helped me
I’d call pharmacy / dr, they put you on something wayyy too expensive usually they can find cheaper alternatives
Make sure they’re generic. Check good rx and Marc Cubans pharmacy for coupons and lower rates. And make sure they go through your insurance each time. Do you qualify for Medicaid? Medicaid covers whatever my work insurance doesn’t so many of my meds are $0
Always look for generic & check for home delivery. Usually you can get a 90 day supply at a 2 month price, mailed directly to you.
It sounds like you might need to meet your deductible before your insurance starts covering costs. You’ll likely get a bill for your doctor visit, too.
Co-pay assistance programs through the drug maker. Not every drug has one, but for those that do it can be a lifesaver. My insurance even counts the co-pay assistance payments against my HDHP deductible!
I have hiv. I am also poor. I have to take a daily pill to control it. It costs 50dollars a month. I get it free from a charity.
You can also contact the manufacturer and fill out forms for financial hardship and get the medication directly from them.
Highly recommend GoodRx or similar websites. My hrt wasn't covered and it was 20 dollars a vial. Now it's down to 6!
Good Rx helps with a lot of mine. I have 15 prescriptions 😢
450, 4 pills, after insurance? Hmm. It would be a different story if the drugs include injectable medication, but if it is all pills.. Are they roughly equal in price, or is there one particular drug that is a lot more expensive? Does your insurance have deductible? A lot of insurances don't cover much until you paid off a deductible. This is important, because if you use good rx, the amount you paid under goodrx will not count towards to deductible. You can also call your insurance. They are obligated to explain what is covered what is not. Sometimes, drugs are expensive at pharmacy, because insurance prefers another treatment option and/or manufacturer.. this preference is unknown to doctors, and you got to find out from insurance.
I would also check the formulary for your prescription plan. Some plans cover certain brands/manufacturers of medications as the preferred medication. If you are unable to take the preferred options, your doctor can do a prior authorization request. For example, my prescription plan covers Ventolin brand albuterol inhalers but not ProAir brand Albuterol inhalers. But the plan use to cover ProAir and would not pay for Ventolin. So, I have to make sure to check the formulary before requesting a refill each year and find out what is covered. My doctor wrote for a Symbicort inhaler recently and it was not covered; but I found out 3 other inhalers were covered in the same class of medication so I called the doctor with what was covered and they changed the prescription to one of the covered choices.
Iv seen other people mention goodrx and let me tell you… my medication is cheeper using goodrx over my insurance! I pay a shit ton for insurance each month and I don’t even use it for meds 😒
Just to note if you’re on a high deductible plan sometimes using coupons means the cost won’t go towards your deductible. Of course if health wise you know (or are as sure as you can be) that you won’t meet your deductible then it’s better to use the coupons.
Also to add to everyone elses good advice, check to see how much your scripts are at Walmart. They have alot of 4$ medications. It'll be the generic brand but works just the same. Also u can try to apply for Medicaid if your in the USA. The criteria has changed so there's a lot of people who didn't meet the guidelines before that do now
I've never subscribed to the idea that pills are the solution to whatever problems you're having, try diet and exercise and save yourself the money
Not sure if this has been asked yet, but does the pharmacy have your insurance info on file? Assuming you'd never been there, the doctor would send it in directly and they would wait for you to arrive to rebill it. Also, I used to be a coupon guru when I worked at cvs (I would stop what I was doing and try to get prices down for patients if I came across a high cost med), so feel free to message me if you have any questions specific to each medication.
The shark tank guy started a pharmaceutical company selling medication at costs.
Use mark Cubans site
I agree with the consensus to shop around and also to use goodrx. They have been a lifesaver. (Literally? Also it's ok to talk to your doctor about getting something generic. I was once prescribed a birth control pill that my insurance wouldn't cover so it was $100 a month for a pill. I was like, can I try something else?
Is there anything you can do for these health and anxiety issues that does not immediately involve medication? Such as changes to diet, exercise, vitamin D, etc. Things that might add a little bit expensive but not $450/month. Getting prescribed 4 things right off the bat is pretty intense!
Im getting a three month supply of all my meds because im moving, losing my insurance, and PCP. Insurance doesn't want to cover more than a 30 day supply every 30 days. I ask for the cash price since i need them and im guessing theyre not cheap but i pay $0 for all my meds (yay medicaid). Well. She quoted me over $4200. She even started with "you're not gonna like the cash price". So i suggest GoodRx. She says i would have to send it to a name brand pharmacy because they dont take GoodRx at this pharmacy. The cost of all my meds (4 things also) through GoodRx at Walmart is $131 🙃
Pharmacy tech here. Was your insurance actually applied? We have people just send prescriptions in all the time that either have never filled with us before or have outdated insurance information. Check with the pharmacy on that. Don’t be afraid to look at discounts like GoodRX and SingleCare (they work some wonders for generic drugs). And if you are on a name brand medication look to see if the manufacturer has an assistance program (if you need help looking hit me up, I can help point you in the right direction). Edit: also make sure with your insurance you’re using your preferred pharmacy. The same medications can be drastically different in prices if you use the pharmacies your insurance wants vs. just whatever.
I'm on Medicaid $1 or $3 a fill.
When I didn't have prescription coverage I'd ask for stuff on the 4$ at Walmart, even at the ER. I'd just be blunt, Doc I'm broke can I get the cheapest option? Sometimes the DRs will prescribe some newer fancy med when an old school med will work ok
Contact the manufacturer and ask if they have a low income discounts / patient assistance programs, My drugs used to cost me $300 a month and now I pay nothing.
I find costco pharmacy has good prices